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The nation’s top employers join industry thought leaders at the Global STEM Talent Summit Initiative (GSTS) on April 27–28th, 2017, at The National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create solutions for developing the next generation of skilled talent necessary to drive innovation and economic growth within a global context. The summit is led by STEMconnector,® the leading organization working with industry, higher education, NGOs and the public sector to provide resources and leadership that supports smart STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) investments.

This year’s theme is short-term STEM talent development strategies and impact on business performance. “We are building off the success of last year’s first-ever employer-led annual Global STEM Talent Summit and bringing together major industry partners to address the STEM talent gap that exists in our country—and globally,” said Dr. Heidi Kleinbach-Sauter, Senior Vice President, Global R&D, PepsiCo, and Chairwoman of the Global STEM Talent Summit. “We have fully transitioned from STEM theory into action and our industry partners are implementing STEM talent development strategies to deliver sustainable enterprise growth.”

Several keynotes will present a call to action, such as Jan Geldmacher, President of Sprint Business, in conjunction with “Pepper,” the intelligent humanoid robot. Jay Bavisi, CEO, EC-Council, will address why we must upskill STEM talent for the projected 8.1 million global cyber jobs, with two million in the USA alone. Surya Kant, President, North America, UK and Europe Operations, Tata Consultancy Services, challenged last year’s summit participants to work on supporting one million tech jobs for the underserved, and he returns in 2017 to build on the digital fluency priority. "Digital technologies are transforming every industry around the world, including manufacturing, banking, retail, and healthcare. Companies are adopting the forces of cloud and automation to make their enterprise far more agile and responsive, in order to provide superior experiences to their end consumers,” says Surya. “In this new world order, companies across almost all sectors need talent with a combination of digital fluency, innovation excellence, and employability skills."

This two-day summit serves as a platform for discussion, sharing best practices in STEM talent development strategies, networking and taking collective action to drive scale and speed in helping to solve the STEM shortfall. Together with 50 strategic partners representing more than six million employees, over $2 trillion in combined revenue, and broad industry segmentation from over 200 delegates, the GSTS will report on progress made as part of a three-year strategic roadmap that aims to drive sustainable impact and deliver tangible solutions to diminish the STEM talent shortfall gap.

“As disruption is evident, business leaders are shifting focus to talent investments and engagement in STEM and tackling the latest of new technology and skills required for jobs,” says Edie Fraser, Chief Executive Officer of STEMconnector.® “As this GSTS initiative continues, leaders are intent on identifying and proselytizing investments in education proven to strengthen a sustainable, long-term talent pool.”

“Ensuring a robust and sustainable pipeline of stem talent is key to drive innovation in industries and economies all over the world,” said Seema Kumar, Vice President, Innovation, Global Health and Science Policy Communication, Johnson & Johnson. “Great innovative ideas can come from anywhere, and our opportunity is to cultivate a broad base of stem talent that is inclusive and diverse. The future of our economy… and our world… depends on it.”

About STEMconnector®
STEMconnector® is a consortium of 165 member companies, associations, societies, policy organizations, government entities, universities, and academic institutions concerned with STEM education and the future of human capital. With several products and services, STEMconnector® is both a resource and a service, designed to link “all things STEM.” STEMconnector’s network includes organizations at the global, national, state, and local levels. STEMconnector® focuses on the STEM workforce and jobs, with a particular emphasis on diversity and women. Our work spans the entire pipeline (Kindergarten to Jobs) and how STEM education experiences translate into careers.